Aetna Foundation to Support States in Fight against the Opioid
Epidemic

North Carolina Harm Reduction Coalition to receive first grant from
$6 million national program

February 13, 2018 12:45 PM Eastern Daylight Time

RALEIGH, N.C.--(EON: Enhanced Online News)--According to the most recent data from the Centers for Disease Control
and Prevention, more than 42,000 Americans die each year from opioid
overdoses. While opioid abuse is widespread across the country, certain
communities and states have been particularly hard hit. In response, the
Aetna Foundation today announced that it will provide grants totaling $6
million to fund select projects that state and local leaders have
identified as promising, or particularly well-suited to tackle the most
critical opioid-related challenges.

“While this is a national health crisis, there is no single solution
that can be applied across the country”

The Aetna Foundation’s initial $1 million grant will be given to the
North Carolina Harm Reduction Coalition (NCHRC) for its Rural Opioid
Overdose Prevention Project. The grant will be announced formally today
in Raleigh at an event with North Carolina Attorney General Josh Stein.

“While this is a national health crisis, there is no single solution
that can be applied across the country,” said Harold L. Paz, M.D., M.S.,
member of the Aetna Foundation Board of Directors. “These grants will
provide important resources to empower local communities to address the
unique characteristics of the opioid-related problems they are facing.”

In 2010, drug overdoses overtook motor vehicle crashes to become the
leading cause of injury death in North Carolina. An average of four
people a day died from drug overdoses in North Carolina in 2016,
according to the North Carolina State Center for Health Statistics.

“There’s no question that rural communities in North Carolina have been
especially hit hard by this epidemic,” said North Carolina Attorney
General Josh Stein. “There are far too many tragic stories of lives
being lost and families bearing the burden. North Carolina Harm
Reduction has been doing excellent work to confront these challenges. I
am grateful to Aetna for supporting North Carolina Harm Reduction to
save lives in North Carolina communities.”

NCHRC’s Rural Opioid Overdose Prevention Project works to prevent opioid
deaths by providing community-level risk education in five rural
counties in North Carolina: Brunswick, Cumberland, Haywood, Johnston and
Vance. The initiative also distributes naloxone overdose-reversal kits
to rural, high-risk opioid users, and promotes adoption of best practice
policies on overdose prevention by law enforcement and health care
professionals.

"This program will be one of the first of its kind to address the unique
challenges that rural communities are facing with regards to the opioid
crisis," says NCHRC executive director Robert Childs. "We are excited
and honored to be part of this important, life-saving work."

The Aetna Foundation will be announcing grants to other organizations in
additional states over the next several months as part of its mission of
Building Healthy Communities by supporting locally based programs,
dynamic partnerships, and proven models that can help accelerate
progress everywhere.

“For the first time in our history, our children’s generation is not
expected to live as long as our own. That is due in large part to the
epidemic of opioid abuse, which presents a clear and present threat to
our communities and health care resources,” said Dr. Garth Graham,
president of the Aetna Foundation and vice president of Community Health
for Aetna. “The innovative work that the North Carolina Harm Reduction
Coalition is doing on the ground is promising, and it’s our hope that it
can also offer a road map for outreach in other rural communities.”

About the Aetna FoundationThe Aetna Foundation is the
independent charitable and philanthropic arm of Aetna (NYSE:AET). As a
national health foundation, we promote wellness, health, and access to
high-quality health care for everyone. This work is enhanced by the time
and commitment of Aetna employees, who volunteered 430,000 hours in 2016
alone. For more information, visit www.aetna-foundation.org.

Contacts

Recent Stories

HARTFORD, Conn.--(EON: Enhanced Online News)--In the wake of the tragedy earlier today at Santa Fe High School in Galveston County, Texas, Aetna (NYSE: AET) is offering support services and counsel... more »